The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1887-01-13

attention. In a special message sent you last
April, 1t was pointed out that to pay tho unex
pended balances OF the unusually large appro.
p%riations Of your immediate predecessors and to
reimburse the drafts made by the last admins.
the expenses Of last year, amounting In the ag
gregate to tho enormous sum OF $6S0,000, 1t had
amount Of s7soOoo allowed nv the constitution te
meet casual deficiencies.
In view of the fact that the expenses Of our
State Government must necessarily continue to
increase, and the further fact that our tax dupli.
cats was not correspondingly increasing, it was
also that you enact o law to tax
enue Fund of the State twenty-five per cent. OF
the income arising therefrom.
You enacted the law taxing the liquor trafic
thereof to the relief Of local taxation, and be.
cause of the absence from'the State ofcertain OF
the senators ana the consequent distrust By cap.
such circumstances, you authorized the borrow
ing of but $4,000, that being in your Judgment
demands until our certificates Of Indebtedness
Of discredit.
The consequence is that 1t has become neoes.
sary to anticipate the revenues of next year to
provide funds to meet the obligations Of this,
though to o much smaller extent than was done
you that the total receipts from oil sources for
the General Revenue Fund for the next year will
amount to about 100000. The probabilities
are that on the fifteenth day Of next February
we will have anticipated this to the amount Of
about 100000, and that at thai time there viii
remain to be paid unexpended balances of the
appropriations OF this year about $500, 900.
In other words, the net revenues available for
next year will not exceed Sa 100000. To the ex-
tent your appropriations exceed this sum 1t will
the revenues of the following year, less unex-
pended balances: Should your appropriations
amount to about s., 100000. the sum appropriated
100000. the amount they are estimated to be at
the end OF this year, the amount you would have
to anticipate would be $4,000.
less than you did last year. We cannot afford
to be too economical in making provision for the
support OF the public institutions of the State.
They must be cared for with sufficient liberality
to enable them to efficiently serve their high pur-
pose. They have not heretofore had all the help
they should have been given. But this burden
VIII necessarily be considerably increased this
year by the appropriations necessary for the
construction OF the Intermediate Penitentiary,
the Soldiers and Sailors Home at Sandusky,
ledo Insane Asylum.
The only considerable item Of expense that
can be saved is that for the transportation OF
prisoners.
1t would be more just to require each county
to pay its own expense for this purpose. Each
s and sSe result result would saeI PI s. e more Vigilance III a Ssa at sn ieast
in scrutinizing accounts. But this alone would
not make enough difference in results to meet
the case.
Unless some provision is made, therefore, to
increase the revenues the deficiency will be
larger at the end Of the year than should be an.
to use a common but expressive expression, we
should 'catch up" and thus avoid altogether
the gripping system Of robbing the future to
Without increasing our sources Of revenue (of
which something will be said hereafter) there
are only three ways thought of in which this
may be done. One is to increase the rate OF
taxation; another Is to borrow, and the third Is
to give the State a portion Of the liquor trafac
tax.
The first method should not be adopted ex-
cept as a last necessity; the second could only
partially give relief since no more than $3.50, 900
tutional provision for casual deficiency being
$4,000, and 100000 having been already Dor,
rowed.)
1t would seem best, therefore, to give relief
by apportioning the liquor trafic tax. It is only
equitable that the State, which provides the
law, should have a part OF the help arising there
relieved, especially in view of the fact that the
necessities of the State are almost wholly coca.
stoned by the obligations 1t has assumed in the
erection and maintenance Of charitable and
penal institutions.
1t is necessary to give attention to other mat
tiers pertaining to the subject
cate pointed out in the special message to which
reference has been made has been arrested,
and we have the gratifying fact presented of an
eightesn i Millions inis Of dollars. The sAU dini ica
fair listing and assessment Of property
dFC MOE6 uppdrcuL tuuu over. IL was
pointed out in the special message that there
was o total lack of uniformity in the valuation
of property, and that n number Of the National
brought suits In the United States courts to en-.
join the collection Of taxes on their shares at
valuations greater than sixty per cent. of their
cent. was a full average OF the general valuation
of property; and 1t was that to
avert a serious consequence that would ensue If
they succeeded, and to secure equality of taxa
tion and justice to all, a re-valuation be had.
subject to equalization by a State board, so that
eQualized over the whole State.
Since that recommendation was made, the
court has rendered a decision'in the Cuyahoga
County bank cases, in which the court finds the
fact to be that the real estate of that county
was valued for taxation at the last decennial ap-
praisement at only sixty per cent. OF its true
value in money, and that conforming to this
action as to realty. personal property is as
sessed and returned in that county at the same
figure, and holds that in consequence In that
county the shares of National banks can not be
assessed at a higher valuation, and accordingly
e~njoins the collection OF taxes on a valuation in
excess thereof. The consequence is that the
State Board Of Equalization for bank shares
must either abdicate its powers entirely, or by
doing its duty as required by law: seem to court
constant litig ltion; or disregarding the plain
cial rate for Cuyahoga County, which is unjust
to all the other counties, or it must level down
the valuation OF the bank shares in the other
eighty-seven counties to the Cuyahoga County
standard, which would be unjust to all other
kinds OF property.
The board has felt it to be its duty to observe
the plain requirements of the statute. They
have accordingly refused to be governed by the
standard OF valuation which has been adopted
in this one county, and have refused to grant
any of the many applications that have been
made to them by the banks of other counties to
have their valuation scaled down to conform to
the decision OF the court.
1t is an Injustice to the banks Of one county to
make them pay taxes on O higher valuation thar
the banks of another county pay on. 1t is not to
be expected that such q wrong will be ac
luiesced in. Unless, therefore, something be
done the banks of the other counties through
out the State will no doubt succeed in securing
the same favorable valuations that have beer
secured by the banks of Cuyahoga County. And
what is secured for the banks can not and mus
not be denied to any other class of property
The consequence is that we are liable to serious
embarrassment SO long as the present condition!
continue.
In this same decision the court holds that thu
owner Of shares in a National bank has a right
In listing the same for taxation, to deduct from
their valuation all his liabilities, and for thi.
reason, viz, the shares of National banks art
taxable IL the States only to the extent allowed
by section 53l9, Revised Statutes of the United
States, and this section provides that they shall
not be taxed at q higher rate than moneyet
capital in the hands of private individuals. Tit
Constitution Of Ohio provides that every specie.
of property. including Credits" shall be taxet
1t Its true value in money, but section 2T30 o
the Revised Statutes Of Ohio defines the tern